HUNDREDS of Jewish settlers who have been ordered to leave a house in Hebron whose ownership is disputed will be evicted within 30 days, according to Israel's Minister for Internal Security, Avi Dichter.
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According to a High Court ruling last week, the 150 settlers who have taken over the four-storey building had until last week to leave of their own accord, pending a district court decision to determine the building's ownership.
Fearing a violent confrontation with the settlers, who are among the most combative in Israel, Mr Dichter said every effort would be made to secure a peaceful eviction.
"The Israel Defence Forces and the Israel police have no intention of deviating from the High Court of Justice's ruling," Mr Dichter said.
"Any such deviation would suggest that one can simply not abide by the law in Israel. We plan on enforcing the law in Israel to the letter, including in Hebron," he said.
The chief of staff of the IDF, Gabi Ashkenazi, said the forces were obliged to enforce the rule of law and to handle those who broke the law, adding that before any forced evacuation, IDF commanders would attempt to hold a discussion with the settler leaders in Hebron.
"The vast majority of the Judea and Samaria residents are normative people," General Ashkenazi said.
"Unfortunately, a small por-tion of them are not so. I am saddened by some of the recent remarks, which are very much against the Jewish tradition. But in any event we are obliged to comply with the rule of law."
In March last year, about 10 Jewish families moved into the building, which they claim was bought through an agent from the Palestinian man who built the house, Saed Rajabi.
After the settlers occupied the building, Mr Rajabi told police that he had not sold the house and lodged a petition with the High Court seeking their eviction.
A subsequent police investigation concluded that the purchase documents produced by the settlers to prove their ownership were forgeries and that Mr Rajabi was legally in possession of the house on the night the settlers moved in.
The settlers, on the other hand, argue that they have a video of the signing of the purchase documents to prove their side of the story.
The issue has since been the subject of several appeals lodged by Mr Rajabi, and counter appeals lodged by supporters of the settlers.
The occupation of the Hebron house, known by occupants as the House of Peace, and by their critics as the House of Contention, has become a rallying point for many Israelis who support the right of Jews to live in the occupied West Bank.
During the weekend, hundreds of teenagers travelled to Hebron to stay with the settlers.
Among them was a Melbourne woman, Deena Lederman, who is 18 and near the end of a 12-month gap year in Israel.
"I wanted to find out more about the issue and was invited down for the weekend to stay with the people inside the house," she said.
Ms Lederman, who will return to Melbourne next year to study commerce at Monash University, said the atmosphere inside was peaceful.
"It's a really warm atmosphere inside and I think it's important that everyone understands that these people are just trying to live in a house they believe is theirs. These people are not trying to cause problems," she said.
A prominent Hebron activist, Baruch Marzel, said petitioning the High Court to protect the settlers in the first place was a waste of time.
"We should have gone straight to a fight with the soldiers who want to come and evict us," he said.
